harmonica
Americannoun
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Also called mouth organ. a musical wind instrument consisting of a small rectangular case containing a set of metal reeds connected to a row of holes, over which the player places the mouth and exhales and inhales to produce the tones.
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any of various percussion instruments that use graduated bars of metal or other hard material as sounding elements.
noun
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Also called: mouth organ. a small wind instrument of the reed organ family in which reeds of graduated lengths set into a metal plate enclosed in a narrow oblong box are made to vibrate by blowing and sucking
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See glass harmonica
Etymology
Origin of harmonica
Noun use of feminine of Latin harmonicus harmonic; in the form armonica (< Italian < Latin ) applied by Benjamin Franklin in 1762 to a set of musical glasses; later used of other instruments
Explanation
A harmonica is a musical instrument that's small enough to fit in your pocket. Harmonicas are especially popular in blues bands. Harmonicas have between 10 and 16 small holes, each with a small reed behind it. Players blow through one or more of the holes, changing the sound by pulling air at times instead, altering the shape and tension of the mouth, and by opening and closing their hands around the harmonica. Using these methods, great harmonica players can extract beautiful, complex sounds from this tiny instrument. The Greek root of harmonica is harmonikos, "musical."
Vocabulary lists containing harmonica
"The Treasure of Lemon Brown"
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Musical Instruments - Introductory
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Musical Instruments - Middle School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The pair smuggled a harmonica and a set of small bells during the Gemini 6A mission.
From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026
An example of a highly creative response includes words like "galaxy, fork, freedom, algae, harmonica, quantum, nostalgia, velvet, hurricane, photosynthesis."
From Science Daily • Jan. 25, 2026
That persistent harmonica intro or, god-forbid, his later forays into doo-wop were an eternal annoyance, part of the reason he started looking for some alternative in the first place.
From Salon • Dec. 14, 2025
He chose a harmonica and played the first part of Billy Joel’s “Piano Man” on repeat.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 7, 2025
He was welcoming the crowds with folksy numbers he played on the instruments—washboard, harmonica, drums, cymbals—lashed to various parts of his body.
From "Anthem of a Reluctant Prophet" by Joanne Proulx
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
